There may be some big changes coming to the rail industry in Canada and Northern Ontario is no exception. Rail infrastructure has become a major part of the discussion in the Ring of Fire development and according to Greg Gormick, a Toronto-based transportation writer and policy advisory, the decisions that are to be made must be carefully considered. In his new blog, Rail Decisions in Canada, Gormick examines rail policy throughout Canadian history in order to demonstrate that the decisions that are made now can have a lasting impact. In part one of a three part series, Gormick looks to the start of the rail industry in Canada with the creation of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1881 and Sir John A. MacDonalds dream of uniting the nation. The key policy decision faced then was whether the transcontinental railway should be built entirely within Canada, or dip south of the border into the United States. In the end, it was the prime minister and the American railroader, Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, who argued loudest for the all-Canadian route. Van Horne, who ultimately directed the CPR’s construction, agreed that a line through the States would compromise the sovereignty and control of this great national project, as well as delay the tapping of northern Ontario’s expected mining and timber wealth. Read the full blog here: northernpolicy.wordpress/2014/10/20/rail-decisions-in-canada-part-1-of-3/
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 17:16:14 +0000
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